Prosecutors are opposing a request by the parents of a Border Patrol agent fatally shot near the Arizona-Mexico border to become a party in the case against a man accused of buying two rifles found at the shooting scene.

The U.S.-Mexico border is safer than it ever has been, but Arizona will remain the most-active region for border crossing even as apprehensions continue to drop, according to a report released Thursday.

An official of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has apologized and told Congress he shares responsibility for mistakes in carrying out a controversial law enforcement operation in Arizona that resulted in high-powered weapons flowing into Mexico.

Arizona’s dream of sealing its border with Mexico is off to a fairly impressive start.

Within 24 hours, more than $58,000 in donations poured in through a web portal that was launched as a state law authorizing Arizona to build and maintain a fence on its border with Mexico became law this week.

Arizona launched a website Wednesday to accept donations to pay for fencing along the Mexico border, and a supporter says the $3.8 million people donated to defend the state's 2010 immigration enforcement law could be just a taste of what to expect.